Hearthstone Update 12.3 nerfs Mana Wyrm, silences Giggling Inventor

With the Hearthstone Fall Championship coming to a conclusion on Sunday, Blizzard is now looking ahead to what's next for the game. And that means it's time to nerf a few cards. There aren't a high quantity of changes coming in the next patch, but the cards that are getting adjusted are certainly expected to impact the Hearthstone meta in a big way.

Aviana's adjustment is the end of an era in the Wild meta

The following cards will be adjusted in Hearthstone's next update, which is set to deploy on October 18:

Giggling Inventor: Will cost 7 mana. (Up from 5)

Mana Wyrm: Will cost 2 mana. (Up from 1)

Aviana: Will cost 10 mana. (Up from 9)

These changes are not only meant to address the Standard meta, but Aviana's change addresses concerns expressed by the game's Wild community, which has been plagued by one-turn kill Druid decks for several expansions. Blizzard is specifically citing the overuse of the Aviana/Kun the Forgotten King combo and is looking to make it a little more costly for those who wish to continue using it.

Meanwhile, the Standard changes address the popularity of Giggling Inventor, which has found a home in Quest Rogues, multiple Druid decks, and Odd Warrior decks. The next update also takes aim at Mana Wyrm, a classic Mage card that has been a 1-drop since practically the beginning of the game. However, with the increasing popularity of Mage burst spells, the early-drop minion has proven to be overly powerful.

Shacknews will look to go into a deeper analysis on all of these changes later today. Stay tuned.

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?